Page 11 of Quarterback Sneak

“Yes.”

“All right,” he caves, thankfully. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He leans forward, and panic hits me squarely in the chest.Is he going to kiss me?I’m not sure, but I don’t want to take the chance. I turn my head away from him. He pauses before kissing my cheek. “See you tomorrow.” He leaves the room without another word, and I try to catch my breath.

The door to the bathroom creaks open. “Is he gone?”

I whirl around. “Were you spying?”

“No!” Tessa says indignantly.

“Yes,” Stephanie says at the exact same time.

I shake my head and wave them in. “He’s gone, but I wasn’t lying. I do really need to study.”

“We won’t keep you,” Tessa says.

“We just wanted to check on you,” Stephanie adds.

I frown at them. “I’m good.” They exchange a glance, and I don’t know what to make of it. “What?”

“Nothing,” Tessa says quickly, too quickly.

“If you have something to say, just say it,” I say but without any heat.

“Just be careful around him,” Tessa says carefully.

“I will, but why are you saying that?”

“I just don’t trust him,” Stephanie says.

I don’t say anything at first. The truth is, I don’t really either; but maybe that’s how all relationships start. I feel bad not giving him a chance. “We haven’t really officially made this into anything.”

“Good,” Stephanie says. “Just, take your time, okay? And listen to your instincts.”

“I will. Now, I wasn’t kidding about studying.”

The door to my room opens, and Sam steps inside. That’s enough to send both girls flying back into their room. They don’t really get along with Sam. I get it. She’s intimidating until you get to know her. “How was the coffee shop?” I ask.

“Good. I didn’t have to close tonight, so that’s a plus.”

“That’s great.”

“What’d you do tonight?” She asks the question easily, but I catch something in the way she asks.

I study her face a moment. “Jace called you.” It’s not a question; I know he did. I can tell by the way she’s acting.

“He totally did. He couldn’t find you and panicked. I told him you were probably just at the library. I mean, where else could you be if you weren’t in our room? You have no social life.”

I don’t react to her words, knowing she doesn’t mean them the way they sound. “I was actually at the game.”

She stills and stares at me. “What?”

I shrug. “I went to the football game.”

“By yourself?”

Her voice is almost harsh, and I try not to resent the way she says things. “I went with friends.”

“Who?”